This section provides background information related to the present disclosure which is not necessarily prior art.
Compressors may be used in heating and cooling systems and/or other working fluid circulation systems to compress and circulate a working fluid (e.g., refrigerant) through a circuit having a heat exchanger and an expansion device. Efficient and reliable operations of the compressor are desirable to ensure that the system in which the compressor is installed is capable of effectively and efficiently providing a cooling and/or heating effect. In order to increase the operating efficiency and capacity of these types of machines, capacity modulation (e.g., variable volume ratio (VVR) systems) or vapor or liquid injection ports may be used. Such system designs often introduce fluid delivery ports and passages within select compressor components. Typical methods for manufacturing scroll components, such as billet machining, casting and forging, are not always conducive to forming various injection ports and tortuous or complex internal passages. These manufacturing methods may require assembly of separate parts and post-machining of the feature to maintain the required dimensional tolerances.
Furthermore, compressors often require reliable lubrication during operation. Typical compressors employ lubricant oils that circulate within the compressor to provide lubrication to moving parts, including various thrust surfaces. A lubricant sump may be disposed within the compressor shell to store the lubricant oil. The oil is typically intermingled with refrigerant and thus creates a working fluid processed within the compressor. The lubricant oil can flow with the working fluid through the compression mechanism of the compressor and into the discharge-pressure zone of the compressor. In the discharge-pressure zone, some or all of the lubricant is separated from the working fluid and returned to the lubricant sump. The lubricant is subsequently recycled through the compressor and may interact with the working fluid being drawn in the suction-pressure zone of the compressor. Such a system relies on adequate flow of lubricant oil to various moving parts during operation of the compressor to provide adequate lubrication.
It would be desirable to ensure adequate lubrication in the regions between moving parts that may not be exposed to high flow rates of lubricant oil, especially during high load conditions. Accordingly, it would be desirable to develop high-strength, light-weight compressor components that can have integrally formed fluid delivery features, such as complex passages and ports, to improve fluid delivery (e.g., refrigerant or working fluid, or lubricant oil) during compressor operation to improve compressor performance and efficiency and reduce manufacturing process complexity.